Ukraine sees no positive signs of a ceasefire covering grain exports through the Black Sea in the coming months, Agriculture Minister Taras Vysotskyi said in Brussels. Strikes by Russia and Ukraine on each other’s port facilities have intensified since July, disrupting supplies and lifting grain prices after earlier hopes for a limited truce or moratorium helped ease markets in September. Russia and Ukraine account for more than a quarter of global wheat shipments. Ukraine’s alternative export routes currently cover 45% of required shipments, but the country estimates they can handle no more than 50%, leaving about 30 million tons of agricultural commodities at risk of not being exported during the current marketing year. Turkey has sought to restore a Black Sea grain corridor (a protected route for agricultural shipments), while Volodymyr Zelensky gave a positive response to the effort, according to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Vysotskyi said Russia had rejected proposals from Kyiv’s partners, despite Russian President Vladimir Putin saying on Sept 25 that the proposals remained available. The European Commission rejected Ukraine’s request for €220 million (S$319.50 million) in agricultural support and a liquidity mechanism, although a US$250 million (S$319.45 million) low-interest World Bank loan should help the sector survive until the new year. Ukraine also wants larger EU tariff-free quotas for bioethanol and sugar in 2027 and may seek increases for other agricultural products if those requests proceed without difficulty.